Chapter Twenty Seven: Into The Unknown

"Doctor," Rose said, with all the patience of someone who was approximately three seconds away from committing murder. "It can't be suicide, that's the rules!"

The Doctor pouted. "But it's got to be. No one else could have been anywhere near him!"

"But it's the rules!" she shot back. Her phone rang, and she checked it. "Oh, hang on, it's Mickey." She got to her feet and pointed at the Doctor. "No peeking!"

He held his hands up in surrender, giving her his most innocent smile. "Would I ever?" She gave him one last look, then left the room.

On the other side of the Cluedo board, Alex smiled. "You know, if she murdered you over this, I'd give her an alibi," she joked.

"Hey!" the Doctor pouted.

She shrugged, grinning. "Sisters before misters." She took a moment to look him over, biting her lip. "I've been thinking about you a lot, lately," she admitted, making him look up. "About us."

"Us?" he echoed.

She nodded. "About what we are. To each other." She hesitated, looking down at her hands. "And when I think about us... about you... I think of forever. But I need to be certain, I have to be sure, I have to know that I'm not alone in this because—" She cut herself off, blushing.

The Doctor cupped her cheek, bringing her gaze up to meet his. "Because what?"

She swallowed, her eyes widening as she realised how close they were. When she spoke, her voice was barely more than a whisper. "Because I love you."

At that, his face split into a grin. "Me too."

"Good," she managed, sighing in relief. And then, "I want to tell Mum."

"Seriously?" he asked, raising his eyebrows. "Can I invest in some body armour first?"

She shook her head, smiling fondly. "No, but I think this might be the best time to do it. She's gonna be too busy freaking out over my face, she'll probably forget to maim you."

Rose popped her head back in then, rolling her eyes at them. "That was Mickey. There's something going on back home he thinks we should be looking at."

Alex met the Doctor's eyes. "Yeah?"

He smiled. "Yeah."